


Who Could Have Guessed?

by ProudGeek4Ever



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Episode: s03 Caméléon | Chameleon, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 11:38:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20563685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProudGeek4Ever/pseuds/ProudGeek4Ever
Summary: Marinette is getting married and everything is so different from how she once imagined it would be. Who could have guessed this would be her life?





	1. The Ceremony

Marinette Dupain-Cheng would never have guessed that her life would look like it did today.

So much had changed during the last ten years of her life.

Yet it still felt like it was only yesterday she still went to Collége Françoise Dupont.

Now she was 24 years old and would soon be entering a new chapter of her life.

Marinette lifted up her skirt and walked up to the full body mirror.

Her hand flew to her mouth when she caught sight of her reflection.

The dress fitted her perfectly.

It was a white sheath dress with a short trail behind her. The skirt was falling in just the right way. A sweetheart neckline with some see-through material created the illusion of a higher neckline with lace on the three quarter sleeves.

Everyone had called her crazy for wanting to make her own dress. Seeing the result in the mirror she knew she made the right decision.

The heels she was wearing was completely covered by the skirt, but they added an inch to her height.

Her makeup was just enough to accent her best features without being too much.

Her hair was loose and had been curled. The tips reached just beneath her shoulders and the white flower made a great contrast to her midnight blue hair.

She was speechless.

This was the day she'd been waiting anxiously for months to come.

It was so different from how she had imagined it like all those years ago.

But then again she'd changed too.

* * *

_Marinette was once again crying._

_She'd been doing that a lot since Lila came back._

_Lila had been back in school for two weeks now._

_In those two weeks Lila had made Marinette's life a bigger hell than Chloe had ever managed in four years._

_Lies._

_Lila told them as easily as breathing._

_In the beginning they had been ridiculous, but fairly easy to disprove._

_Ladybug, Prince Ali and Jagged Stone were all very well known people and the class had met all of them att some point._

_Alya was known for the Ladyblog and had at multiple times gotten interviews or questions answered by the spotted heroine even though she didn't know she was her bestie._

_But Alya never asked Ladybug if Lila really was her best friend._

_Rose and Prince Ali e-mailed each other and had even video chatted a few times since his visit._

_But Rose never asked Prince Ali if Lila had been in Achu and met him._

_Marinette herself had made Jagged Stone a pair of sunglasses and a cover. He had even been at her house. Her classmates knew this._

_They never asked her if Jagged ever had a kitten._

_The reason Marinette tried to expose her was simple._

_She didn't like the fact that someone was stringing her friends along and she didn't like having to sit alone because of a lying brat._

_Then Lila threatened her and declared war._

_She said she'd turn everyone against her._

_Marinette was wrong in believing her friends would trust her, their everyday Ladybug._

_Some of them she'd known her entire life._

_But they believed a stranger instead of her._

_They believed Lila when she recounted how Marinette had threatened her in the restroom._

_They believed her when she told them Marinette was a bully._

_They believed her when she started crying that Marinette had hit her._

_They believed every single lie she fed them._

_It didn't matter that Marinette always shared pastries with them. Marinette who always lent a hand when they needed it. Marinette who did everything for her friends._

_In the end it didn't matter._

_Because Marinette was apparently a jealous bully who found joy in other people's misery._

_She had always bent over backwards for them. Dropped everything when they needed her. She never asked for anything in return. Not even thanks._

_Lila claimed she only told people what they wanted to hear._

_Did that mean her classmates wanted to see her as the villain?_

_She could feel something inside of her snap._

_A few squares of toilet paper got to serve as tissue for her to wipe her tears away with._

_She wouldn't cry anymore._

_They weren't worth it._

* * *

"Are you alright Marinette?" Sabine Cheng asked her daughter.

Marinette hadn't even noticed her entering the room.

She could only nod.

Her maman seemed to understand what she was feeling and took a step back to take a good look of her.

A smile made it's way onto her lips. She looked so proud. She also looked close to tears, but that was understandable given the circumstances.

Her maman was probably one of the few things that hadn't changed.

Her hair might have gotten a few gray hairs and her face a few wrinkles, but she pretty much looked the same.

Most importantly, she was still the same person.

Her maman was still just as protective, hardworking and understanding as she had been when Marinette was a teenager.

* * *

_When Marinette got home from school that day she made a decision._

_She entered the bakery to see her maman at the cash register._

_There weren't any customers at the time._

_Marinette was thankful._

_She didn't think she'd be able to do this if there had been any._

_Maman noticed her and had a great, big smile on her lips._

_It faded fast when she noticed the solemn face Marinette was wearing._

_Marinette's eyes was pleading. "Can we talk?"_

_In no time they were both sitting on the sofa in the living room._

_And Marinette told her maman everything._

_From following Lila and Adrien, the cover version she'd given Alya and Nino, to her class turning against her._

_She didn't leave anything out._

_No tears escaped her eyes._

_She had promised herself she was done with that and she would keep that promise._

_Her maman didn't say anything until she was done._

_Then she told her what their options were._

* * *

She heard a slight knock on the door.

"Come in," she called with uneven voice.

The door opened and Tom Dupain entered the room.

He gave a bittersweet smile. "My little girl all grown up."

She couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her throat.

"Papan, I haven't been a little girl for a long time,."

"Nonsense." Her papan dramatically shook his head. "You are always going to be my little girl."

And in a way he was right.

* * *

_She and her maman had finally agreed on what to do next._

_It had taken a while to discuss all options and decide what would work best, but they were pretty sure about their choice._

_Then her papan entered the apartment._

_He took one look at his wife and daughter before taking a seat opposite them._

_"What's wrong?" he asked._

_The logical thing to do would be for Marinette to explain everything or at least give a summary, but Marinette found herself tongue tied._

_"We're going to get Marinette a transfer to Ms. Mendeleiev's class." Here Sabine scowled. "And it better be effective immediately."_

_It might not have been the most enlightening explanation, but at least there weren't any beating around the bush._

_Her papan stared blankly at them for a few seconds._

_Then he asked what had happened._

_A more detailed explanation later and he was fully on board with their plan._

_"I'll call headmaster Damocles and demand a transfer."_

* * *

"Everyone's ready," her papan informed them.

Her maman started moving. "Then we better not keep them waiting." When her hand reached the handle she took one last look at her before opening the door. "I'll tell the girls they can come in."

Then they both left her.

It took less than a minute for the door to open and her maid of honour to come in.

Kagami gave a small smile. "Are you ready?"

That was a rather big change.

Thinking back Marinette could easily remember how they had barely gotten along in the beginning.

Kagami had ended up becoming one of Marinette's best friends.

* * *

_Marinette would never underestimate her parents again._

_The principal hadn't wanted to let her change class in middle of the year._

_Her parents hadn't taken no for an answer and had dragged her with them to school to personally discuss the matter with Mr. Damocles._

_She had waited outside and didn't really know what had happened inside the office, but her parents came out with self satisfied smirks, the headmaster was shaking and she was allowed to change class._

_So the next day she entered Ms. Mendeleiev's classroom._

_Everyone was already there and she didn't really know where she was supposed to be._

_She settled on standing awkwardly at the front._

_"Mr. Damocles told me you were transferring here," Ms. Mendeleiev told her. "You can sit next to Kagami."_

_Marinette nodded slightly and turned to look for her seat._

_She recognised quite a few of her classmates._

_Most noticeable were Aurore, Mireille and Marc._

_And of course Kagami._

_The other bluenette was sitting in the back row and was currently digging in her bag for something._

_Marinette took a deep breath, hoped for the best and took her seat._

_Kagami's eyebrows rose when she noticed her, but other than that she didn't show any reaction to her presence._

_She didn't have time to think more about her before the bell rang and class began._

_It went surprisingly well._

_Ms. Mendeleiev taught in a very different way than Ms. Bustier, but change was good._

_That's why she changed class after all._

_She found it easier to concentrate and a lot easier to understand what was going on._

_Soon enough the bell once again made it self known and they got a short break._

_Kagami seemed to take that as her invitation to start up conversation._

_"If you don't mind me asking, why are you here?"_

_She should have expected that._

_"Lila Rossi were spreading rumours about me." She made eye contact. "Everyone else believed her and abandoned me."_

_Kagami's eyebrows crinkled. "Even Adrien?"_

_Marinette couldn't help but wonder why Kagami thought Adrien would believe her._

_"No, he knew she was lying." She hesitated. "He said exposing her wouldn't make her a better person. He said the lies were harmless and she wasn't hurting anyone."_

_The other girl closed her eyes and muttered something._

_It sounded suspiciously much like she was counting under her breath._

_Kagami opened her eyes again. "I thought he had a crush on you?"_

_She snorted. "He definitely doesn't. I would know. I had the world's biggest crush on him."_

_She judged Kagami's expression._

_The girl was incredibly good att hiding her feelings, but Marinette was just as good at noticing the small things._

_The way her jaw went just a bit slack showed that she was shocked._

_Why was harder to tell._

_Kagami caught herself and her jaw tightened. "Then I have to apologise." She didn't let her eyes waver from hers. "I believed you had turned down Adrien and then flaunted that other boy in his face. I've treated you poorly based on a misunderstanding. I hope there's still time for me to rectify my behaviour."_

_It took a few seconds for Kagami's words to really sink in. Probably because of the formal way they were delivered._

_She held out her hand and smiled. "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng."_

_"Kagami Tsurugi." She took her hand and shook it. "Pleasure meeting you."_

* * *

Marinette didn't have time to answer Kagami's question before the door flew open and Chloe ran in.

Ten years ago Marinette would have never even considered inviting Chloe to her wedding.

Chloe scanned her up and down before giving a nod of approval. "You look stunning."

It was evidence that people can change.

Just because a person had been a bully didn't mean they would always be one.

* * *

_It had been two weeks since Marinette transferred._

_She and Kagami had connected._

_Nowadays you you rarely saw one of them without the other._

_Kagami would wait outside school for Marinette to arrive. They sat next to each other during class and always partnered up together. Breaks were spent together. Lunches would happen at either the bakery or at some nearby restaurant. If Kagami had fencing practice Marinette would wait for her while sketching or getting a head start on the homework._

_It was one of those times that it happened._

_Fencing practice was over and Marinette was waiting for Kagami to get out of the showers._

_A cough drew her attention away from her sketchbook._

_She looked up to see Chloe standing in front of her._

_It was the first time in quite a while that someone from her old class had approached her._

_In the beginning they would try to accuse her of all kind of things, but Kagami quickly put a stop to that._

_Then Lila had the nerve to tell Kagami some half baked lie about Marinette. She backed off when Kagami told her what would happen to her if she tried telling her another lie about her._

_Adrien had tried to throw his pacifist morals on her, but stopped when she told him she no longer had any interest in exposing Lila._

_It was true._

_She no longer thought Lila was worth the bother._

_Chloe handed her a notebook. "I'm so sorry."_

_Marinette didn't know how to react._

_The blonde had gotten a lot better since heroes day, but she never expected her to actually apologise for anything._

_She chose to investigate the mysterious notebook instead of pointless wondering._

_It was a yellow notebook with three black stripes and was quite thick._

_She opened it and began reading... to then abruptly close it again._

_She looked up at Chloe. "What is this?"_

_Chloe mumbled something unintelligible._

_It must have shown on her face how much of that she understood._

_Chloe took a deep breath. "It's a complete list of everything I can remember doing to you that I need to apologise for."_

_Oh..._

_She opened up the book again and began reading._

_It was too much too read at once so she skipped a lot._

_Chloe had certainly been thorough._

_Some of these things happened four years ago._

_She had really taken the time to write everything down._

_Every snide remark, every shove and every mean action._

_Everything was there._

_It was the last line that stood out to her._

_'...for not standing up for you when Lila started lying.'_

_She put the notebook into her backpack._

_She could read it properly later._

_Kagami chose that moment to walk out of the changing rooms._

_"What's happening here?" Kagami asked._

_It was clear she thought Chloe was bothering her._

_Marinette stood up and put her arm around Chloe's shoulder._

_"This is Chloe. I thought she could join us at the bakery today."_

* * *

The girls wasted no time in ushering her out into the hallway.

Her papan was already waiting for them and took her arm after handing her a bouquet of white lilies.

Kagami and Chloe would be walking behind them.

The music started playing and the doors opened.

They started walking. Her eyes landed on one of the groomsmen.

Marc gave her an encouraging smile.

* * *

_The duo of Marinette and Kagami had easily become a trio with Chloe._

_In less than three days Chloe had decided to and convinced her father that she would be better off in Ms. Mendeleiev's class._

_They did everything together._

_Apparently that included chasing off evil butterflies._

_"Got it!" Chloe exclaimed when she caught the akuma in a glass jar and closed the lid._

_They must have looked ridiculous the way that they had been jumping around trying to stop the little insect._

_Marinette crouched next to the upset boy they had stumbled upon. "What happened Marc?"_

_The boy had tear tracks covering his face._

_He told them how Lila had read his and Nathaniel's comic book. She thought Ladybug would never say some of the lines and Nathaniel chose to make her the new writer of the comic book._

_Who better to write about Ladybug than Ladybug's best friend?_

_Nathaniel hadn't even asked Marc if he was willing to step down. He just assumed._

_"Cheer up." Chloe told him. "It's his loss if he doesn't want Collége Françoise Dupont's best writer to work with him."_

_"I would have to agree." Kagami added her two cents to the conversation. "Your work is exemplary."_

_And then they were four._

* * *

She smiled back and let her eyes travel to the best man.

They had dated for awhile, but they broke it off on good terms.

He was engaged to Kagami now and she couldn't be happier for them.

Marinette knew she had a lot to thank Luka for.

* * *

_It was their eight date so far._

_The girls and Marc had managed to talk her into asking Luka out again and she had._

_They had shared an ice-cream and taken a walk in the park._

_They'd been dating ever since._

_Now they were having a picnic._

_She had brought bread and dessert while he had made them lunch._

_Somehow they had started talking about their futures._

_Luka wanted to become a musician so he could spread his music._

_He wanted to know what her goals were._

_She told him she wanted to get an internship to one of the big fashion companies and try to work herself up to a designer position._

_He eyebrows scrunched up. "Why would you limit yourself to working under someone when you could make it on your own?"_

_Marinette opened her mouth to protest, but nothing came out._

_Why couldn't she?_

_She had the ideas._

_She knew people liked what she did. Jagged Stone was proof of that._

_From then on she had a new dream and she was going to make it real._

* * *

He helped her create her own dream and she made it real.

MDC Fashions was one of the world's top brands and she had worked with a lot of famous people.

She spared a few glances around the room.

All girls dream about their wedding, but Marinette would never in her wildest dreams have thought this was what her would have looked like.

She could see her mother crying in the front row.

Most of her relatives had come all the way to Paris for her big day.

Ms. Mendeleiev and Ms. Bustier were there. Penny Rolling could be seen handing Jagged Stone a tissue. Clara Nightingale and Anarka Couffaine were crying together. Wearing one of her dresses were Audrey Buorgeois herself.

So many people had come to show their support.

Marinette didn't let her eyes fall on her husband to be before everyone had taken their places and she had handed her bouquet to Kagami.

He looked incredible.

The black suit they had picked out together made him look like the complete opposite of her.

Yin and yang.

The point was further made by her hair as dark as night and his mop of sunlight blond.

"Do you take Marinette Dupain-Cheng to be your lawfully wedded wife until death do you apart?"

His eyes met hers. "I do."

She loved the way he looked at her as if she was his entire world.

It hadn't always been that way.

She hadn't liked him in the beginning.

And through the years they hadn't always seen eye to eye.

They were too different for that to happen.

But today she wasn't just marrying her fiance and boyfriend of 3 years.

No, she was marrying her best friend and partner.

When Adrien had refused to stand up for her a dream had been destroyed.

When he essentially told her that Lila's feelings mattered more than hers she gave up all hopes and dreams of ever being Mrs. Agreste.

"Do you take Félix Agreste to be your lawfully wedded husband until death do you apart?"

Marinette couldn't help but think that fate had a weird sense of humour.

She had no idea what this new chapter in her life would lead to, but she knew that she was ready for whatever life might throw at her.

And if she wasn't she had some wonderful friends that would have her back.

"I do."


	2. The Reception

It felt like she was walking on clouds.

She'd just gotten married!

They had been planning for months and tomorrow it would all be over. Planning their wedding had been such a large part of their lives lately. It would feel weird not doing it anymore.

Everything would be different from now on.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

She turned around and looked right into a red tie.

It didn't make any difference that she was wearing heels.

He was still a head taller than her.

She put on her best fake angry face. "My thoughts are worth much more than a single penny."

The snort that escaped him was considered a win in her book.

Félix moved forward so he was standing to her right.

His arm found it's way around her waist. "Well, of course they are." Then he pulled her a bit closer to him and smirked. "But I've got husband discount."

That was just the kind of think he'd say.

Sometimes he was too smooth for his own good.

He might look gloomy and uptight, but he was quite the romantic.

She looked up into his eyes. "I'll miss planning our wedding."

"I won't." He gave a fake shudder. "I could quite happily go the rest of my life without ever wondering if the table cloths matches the serviettes or if they clash with the flowers ever again."

Marinette chuckled.

Félix could add numbers in his sleep, but table cloths were apparently out of his expertise.

But that was fine.

That's why he had her.

She leaned a bit more on him and gave a content sigh.

They stood there for awhile.

Not doing anything specific. Just being and watching.

The reception had been going on for a few hours.

The dinner had been eaten and the cake served.

There had been some speeches and dances in between.

Now everyone was eating cake and mingling.

It was a big, mismatched bunch of people that were having a good time together.

There had even been a toga line earlier.

It didn't surprise anyone that Chloe was the one to start it.

The surprise was that Kagami was in on it and somehow managed to make most people join in.

"I know we sent the invitations together, but I didn't expect this many to actually make it," Félix admitted slowly.

Marinette took a good look around.

"Your right." Her eyebrows rose. "I'm surprised that so many people could come. I don't think anyone we invited couldn't."

She started checking people off her mental guest list.

Félix seemed to have the same idea. "Your parents are obviously here."

She snorted. "Like they's ever miss this. They were planning the cake from the moment I brought you home for dinner." Her eyebrows scrunched up. "Have you seen uncle Wang? I don't think I've seen him."

He pointed to a corner. "He's talking to your grandmother over there. I think I've seen everyone in your very extensive family tree." He paused. "Your great grandfather asked me when he should be expecting great-great grandchildren."

She blinked.

She was not dealing with this at her own wedding.

Note to self: avoid great grandfather.

Marinette shook her head. "Okay, so all my family is here. Everyone else I think I've seen."

"I think we can note that everyone you meet love you so much that they don't want to miss your wedding," Félix remarked.

She couldn't really argue with that.

Everyone had come after all.

And the guest list was mostly made up by her friends and family.

Well, she and Félix had the same best friends.

And her family had basically adopted him already.

And most people that she had met from her work had met him too.

He got along fantastically with Penny Rolling.

She and Jagged thought it had something to do with their shared love of organising everything to the last detail.

But he hadn't wanted to invite anyone that she wasn't already inviting.

He didn't have any friends from before he met her.

His parents had died in a plane crash when he was ten years old and he had gone to boarding school from then on.

The only family he had left was his uncle and his cousin.

Gabriel and Adrien Agreste.

He told her they didn't deserve any invitation.

Especially since with Adrien Agreste came Lila Agreste.

She personally couldn't understand why he had married that egocentric liar, but Adrien had always been and would probably always be first and foremost a doormat.

She couldn't bring herself to care.

They deserved each other.

"-y got kicked out by security."

She must have zoned out again.

Marinette winced. "Could you take that again?"

Félix rolled his eyes, but he didn't look irritated at all.

He was used to her mind wandering after all.

"Nadja Chamack came up to me earlier," he began telling the story again. "Apparently she had witnessed everyone from your old class storm into the building yesterday and nearly knock Mrs Agreste's door to the ground. They had been yelling loudly at her about some lawsuit for slander. In the end they got kicked out by security."

Something smelt fishy.

"What lawsuit could they be talking about?"

He just put on his innocent face. "When a person or persons spreads lies about someone which can destroy their reputation it counts as slander. They all had connections to an article that never got printed because your lovely husband has allies within the newspaper."

It took a while for it all to sink in.

She had left her old class and Lila in the past.

They didn't bother her after a few futile attempts when she just had transferred class.

Now she didn't care about them at all.

But this was different.

What Félix was hinting at was serious.

If Lila tried to destroy her reputation she would pursue this as if she was a complete stranger.

It didn't carry any significance that they had history together.

If Lila tried to attack her, because that's what slander was, an attack, then she wouldn't let it go so easily.

Her old friends might still believe Lila for all that she knew, but that didn't bother her in the slightest.

It wouldn't change anything.

They had already made their choice ten years ago and they hadn't chosen her.

She had moved past that ages ago.

There was only one way for her to handle this situation.

"Good. I hope you'll dig your heel in with this lawsuit," she told him.

"Always," he reassured her before leaving her alone again.

Marinette mentally thanked her lucky stars that she wasn't on Félix's bad side.

Multiple people could testify that it was a downright terrible place to be.

He might share some blood with Adrien "Pushover" Agreste, but he didn't agree at all with the golden boy's pacifistic ideals or "see no evil" attitude.

She had learnt quickly that crossing him was a very bad idea.

Félix was calm, collected and smart.

If angered it was a truly dangerous combination.

The only rule he followed was that if someone threw the first punch they were free game.

It didn't matter if it was a literal or figurative punch.

She thought it was undeniably sweet that he was so protective of her.

That reminded her of something.

Marinette turned her eyes up to the beams.

She had hidden a tiny little blanket and some cookies up there before all the guests arrived.

You wouldn't be able to see them if you didn't know what to look for.

And looking down at her with those big, blue eyes was Tikki.

She gave a slight smile before turning her gaze away.

No reason to make people suspicious.

Tikki had been there for her through everything.

Both the good times and the bad.

Her support had kept her from having breakdowns when everything was at it's worst.

She had Félix and her friends now, but Tikki was different.

Tikki was a constant presence that knew her better than herself.

Félix didn't mind sharing.

It helped that they got along splendidly.

That had certainly been an ordeal.

Ladybug wasn't needed anymore since Hawkmoth had disappeared.

She didn't know what had happened, but somehow Chat Noir had gotten hold of the butterfly miraculous and the peacock miraculous that apparently been missing and given them to Master Fu.

He turned in his own miraculous at the same time.

They're partnership had slowly been falling apart at the seams for some time.

Chat thought she didn't trust him and was visibly irritated by the whole secret identity thing.

She hated how he would flirt in the middle of battles and then throw and tantrum when she didn't feel the same.

They had argued a lot and both said things they didn't mean or maybe they did mean them, but just couldn't handle it.

In the end he'd told the guardian that he couldn't do it anymore.

They never found out each other's identities.

She got the option to hand in her miraculous too considering Ladybug wasn't needed any longer.

Marinette hadn't hesitated to decline.

Her kwami was too important to never see her again.

Félix had found out about her past as Ladybug at the same time as their friends.

It took a whole lot of explaining, but it was impossible to cover up.

Chloe knew what kwamis looked like.

She probably wouldn't have tried even if that wasn't the case.

It felt good to talk about it with someone.

That it was her boyfriend and their four best friends was just a bonus.

Then Master Fu died.

He was an old man and he had been prepared for it.

Enter guardian of the miraculous, Félix Agreste.

One morning he had walked into her apartment with a box and a letter explaining everything.

It was one of those few times she'd seen him shocked.

He'd been unresponsive for ten minutes.

For being a person with an impressive poker face, his expression had been hilarious.

It was a mix somewhere between uncomprehending and confused.

She's taken lots of pictures.

"Enough thinking." Chloe yanked her out onto the dance floor. "It's your wedding. Have fun and let loose for once in your life."

Marinette didn't even try protesting.

It would be a losing argument anyway.

Kagami came out of nowhere and joined them. "I have to agree with Chloe. Weddings are for celebrations. You can save your philosophical thoughts until tomorrow."

They were right.

Reminiscing she could do later.

Now she had a wedding to get back to.


	3. The Honeymoon

Marinette was content.

No deadlines.

No schedule.

No work.

Two weeks with only her and the blond that was currently reading next to her.

It felt fantastic.

To think that they had come such a long way from where they began.

* * *

_She needed a job._

_To start a brand you needed money and that was something she didn't have._

_That's why she was currently at a restaurant in one of Paris' biggest business districts._

_They needed a part time waitress._

_It was perfect for her_

_A part time job was all she needed to get on her feet and still be able to spend time designing and working on her future plans._

_It didn't hurt that she could earn more with tips._

_Today was her first day._

_Everything had already been explained to her and then she had been led to a group of waiters and waitresses that were preparing for opening._

_"This is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She's the new waitress and I expect you to teach her how everything is done here," the owner of the place had introduced her before leaving._

_A few introductions later and a quick crash course in what she was supposed to do and she was ready to begin._

_Eight tables were her responsibility._

_The girl that had the tables to her right, Delphine, had told her to ask for her help if she needed it._

_Marinette was in no way arrogant, but she had grown up in a bakery._

_She would handle this no matter what._

_The boy to her left, one of the few who hadn't introduced themselves, was looking at her._

_She gave him a smile._

_He just looked unimpressed and turned away._

_There weren't time to think about it anymore because the doors had been opened and the first customers were starting to arrive._

* * *

_It had been a lot busier than she had first thought._

_Customers kept coming in and most of them were in a hurry to get back to their jobs._

_She had to be ready to take their orders directly when they knew what they were going to have._

_Then she needed to bring the food over as fast as possible when the dishes came out of the kitchen._

_Glasses had to be refilled and tables reset._

_And everything had to go fast._

_Some people didn't even have time to wait for the bill to come._

_They'd just hand her a bill or two that was supposed to cover the food and told her to keep the change._

_Not that she minded._

_Who knew businessmen tipped so much more than the standard 10 percent?_

_She had only been working for a bit more than four hours and she already had enough money to buy a whole lot of fabric._

_She had a twenty minute break until she was supposed to start working again._

_The customer flow had slowed down so half the waiters and waitresses were having their break now while the rest covered their tables._

_Then they would switch._

_It was a perfect time to learn more about her new coworkers._

_And that's what she did._

_Everyone was friendly and more than happy to talk with her._

_Well, except the guy with the tables next to hers._

_He had sat in the corner with a bottle of water the entire break and hadn't said a word to anyone._

_Staring he did though and especially at her._

_It was kind of creepy to be honest._

_It didn't help that he had that kind of arrogant snob feeling around him._

_The way he walked and looked at them all kind of sent out the 'I'm better than you and I know it' message._

_Marinette knew she didn't have any interest in wasting her time on an anti social waiter with a too big ego._

* * *

_She had been invited to dinner by Chloe and Kagami._

_They shared an apartment in the more expensive part of Paris._

_It had been a good arrangement since they wanted their own space, but didn't want to shoulder the chores alone._

_It also helped that they both were used to high standard living and didn't want to settle for less._

_The three of them had grown close in the last few years._

_They'd also come a long way from where they were when they became friends._

_Chloe was working to someday take over Le Grand Paris._

_She already made most of the decisions and were getting more and more responsibility._

_Customer privacy was something she had become known to take seriously and such had many famous guests book their stay at the hotel._

_Kagami had taken over her parents' company worldwide and handled everything perfectly._

_She was also a world renowned fencer and often competed in big competitions._

_The company's motto was that perfection might not be possible, but that shouldn't be a reason to not try to achieve it._

_And then there was her._

_She had made a few commissions through the years, but she wasn't where she wanted to be._

_Fashion was a hard industry and only the best made it._

_Marinette knew she could do it, but the so called experts didn't think she had it in her._

_It would be challenging to start her own brand without any investor, but no one wanted to fund her._

_They kept saying she was too young._

_Both Kagami and Chloe had offered to give her the money, but she wanted an investor that believed in her for her talent and not because she was their best friend._

_It would take more effort on her part than if she had a business partner._

_She was ready for that._

_RING._

_"Mari, can you get the door?" Chloe shouted from the kitchen._

_They had just eaten and the girls were clearing the table and washing the dishes._

_She opened the door and welcomed the boys in._

_That was another thing that had changed for the better._

_Luka had written music for musicals and films from all over the world._

_He loved the stories he could tell that way._

_It became a tradition to all meet up and watch the films together when they released._

_Luka had also started dating Kagami some months ago._

_It had been about time._

_Marc had written a novel that made the top ten of the year._

_A sequel was in progress._

_He had told her that the comic with Nathaniel had been inspired by Ladybug even though he never got to finish it._

_This time he had wanted to follow the same theme, but make everything from scratch with no connection to reality._

_Marc had made a superheroine inspired by her, Marinette Dupain-Cheng._

_It was touching and she had no shame in admitting that she had cried._

_The boys both gave her a small hug before entering._

_"So how did the first day at work go?"_

* * *

_It had been two weeks since Marinette started working at the restaurant._

_She'd learnt a lot during that time._

_Including that businessmen was easily irritated, b_ _eing a waitress was an art and Félix for some reason didn't like her._

_It was the latter that had taken the most time for her to figure out._

_The waiter's, that had been quite rude to her during her first day, name was Félix._

_He hadn't told her that._

_He actually hadn't said a word to her since she started working here._

_She had overheard the boss call him over with his name._

_Félix hadn't been anything but standoffish to her._

_She'd never even heard him say a word._

_The weird thing was that he didn't seem to have a problem about any of the other waiters._

_It was just her._

_She would find him staring at her at all kind of times and he always had this look that quite clearly said that he was judging her._

_He kept his distance, but he was tearing at her patience._

* * *

_Happy thoughts, happy thougths, happy thoughts._

_Pastries, new baked bread and chocolate chip cookies._

_Her place of inspiration._

_The feel of fabric between her fingers as she pushed it through the sewing machine._

_Pillow fights with the girls and video games with the boys._

_Jumping rooftops above Paris as Ladybug._

_Breath in._

_Breath out._

_Marinette opened her right eye._

_He was still staring._

_Happy thoughts clearly didn't cut it._

_This just wasn't her day._

_She'd lost track of time while designing yesterday and had gone to bed late._

_Marinette had forgotten to set an alarm clock and had therefor overslept._

_She had nearly been late to work._

_To top it off there had been more customers than normal so she had been constantly running around._

_Tired didn't even describe half of it._

_It didn't make it better that she had a stalker judging her every moment._

_It lead to her doing what any sane person would do in her situation._

_Marinette snapped_

_She slammed her sketchbook shut._

_It had been what she had initially planned to do to burn half an hour._

_She grabbed her bag and made her way to the only other person in the room._

_"I'm only going to say this once so listen carefully." Her voice was dripping with venom. "I have had it with your judging stares following me everywhere. You don't know me and for some reason you still hate me. That's fine. I couldn't care less. You are just a pompous jerk who needs to undermine others to make yourself feel important. But keep your judgement for yourself."_

_After that she left._

* * *

_"Let me get this straight." Chloe was trying not to laugh. "You called him out on his behaviour from the last few weeks."_

_Marinette gave a slight nod from where she had buried her face in her arms._

_"And you called him a pompous jerk." The blonde had raised one eyebrow._

_Another nod._

_"I'm sorry..." and that was all she managed to say before bursting out laughing._

_Marinette wanted the ground to swallow her whole._

_Kagami put a hand on her back. "It could have been worse."_

* * *

_Marinette was sitting in a café around the corner from her job._

_It was the day after she'd blown up at Félix and _ _she didn't have any work today._

_When she had calmed down the guilt had set in._

_It wasn't that she called him out, but _ _the way she went about it._

_She'd been rather rude._

_The coffee in front of her had long since gone cold and she didn't have the energy to get a new cup._

_"I didn't expect to find you here."_

_She didn't recognise the voice so she had to turn around to find out who was talking to her._

_It was Félix._

_He moved around the table and took the seat opposite her._

_This was the first time she heard him talk._

_And he wasn't wearing that judging face she'd gotten so used to._

_Words failed here._

_He put his backpack down next to his feet._

_Then he locked eyes with her. "I thought about what you said yesterday." He waited for her to say something, but continued when she didn't. "I'm sorry for treating you that way."_

_Some people would answer with 'you should be' or 'about time'._

_Marinette didn't say either._

_She had always been a believer in second chances and she would be lying if she said she wasn't curious about this Félix that she hadn't seen before._

_"I have to apologise too." She winced slightly. "I shouldn't have taken out my frustrations on you"_

_The tension in Félix shoulders seemingly disappeared._

_If she hadn't been paying attention she wouldn't have noticed._

_He closed his eyes and shook his head. "You didn't do anything wrong. I was acting like a major jerk and I didn't even realise it."_

_Her eyebrows furrowed._

_Félix was acting so differently from all their earlier encounters._

_"I don't think I understand," she admitted to him._

_He was about to say something more when a waiter came up to the table._

_Félix ordered something she didn't catch before turning back to her._

_He took a deep breath. "You were right. I was staring at you. But I wasn't judging you. I just couldn't seem to figure you out."_

_That was..._

_That was oddly comforting._

_But she had misunderstood something and she still wasn't sure she knew what it was._

_Marinette tilted her head a few degrees. "What was it you couldn't figure out?"_

_That was something she just couldn't understand._

_He was obviously still thinking it over when the waiter came back and placed a coffee each in front of them._

_Félix paid and she gave him a quick thanks._

_How he noticed her coffee was cold she didn't want to know._

_"Most businessmen talk freely while eating. You learn a lot." He hesitated slightly before continuing. "A few months ago some talked about a Marinette Dupain-Cheng who had been searching for investors to start a fashion brand, but she hadn't gotten any. They thought she was a delusional school girl who wasn't ready for the fashion world."_

_It hurt._

_A lot._

_She didn't know that was what they all thought about her._

_Then she looked into his eyes and saw something she couldn't identify._

_She didn't bother to hide the hurt. "So you wanted to know if I was as delusional of a school girl as they said?"_

_He shook his head. "I wanted know why they judged you so fast."_

_What do you say to that?_

_She settled for taking a sip of her coffee before answering._

_"It's true that I wanted an investor. I'm a designer. I have no experience with business or accounting, but I want to start my own brand." She took another sip of her hot beverage. "Creating any kind of business takes money and skills and that is something I don't have. No one thinks it would be worth funding me. I'm still going to do it. It's just going to take more time."_

_They sat in silence for a while and focused on their drinks._

_A lot had been said and it all had to sink in._

_The silence wasn't uncomfortable or weird._

_It just felt right._

_Then Félix apparently came to some sort of decision._

_He put together his hands in front of him on the table. "What if I made you an offer?"_

_She didn't understand where he was going with this._

_"That depends on the offers."_

_She put down her coffee._

_She had a feeling she shouldn't be holding a hot drink._

_"I have a business degree. I have also been saving all my tips for 15 months," he told her. "I help you start your own brand. You do all the designing and everything else that has with that to do. I take care of the business side of it all and keep track on the numbers. PR, legalities and everything like that I can handle. We both get a job we enjoy, but it's a partnership. We split everything 50/50."_

_Than he waited._

_She knew he was waiting for her to make her decision._

_And what a decision it was._

_Everything she had been looking for was sitting right in front of her._

_The instinct to grasp it with both hands and not let go was hard to squash, but she needed answers._

_"If you are as good as you say," she started, "why aren't people jumping at having you work for them?"_

_It was too good to be true._

_He gave a small sigh. "I used to go for interviews and everything would go perfectly. Then they heard my last name and promptly backed out. It didn't matter that I graduated early with highest marks. All they cared about was the fact that I have familial connections to a different company."_

_It was not the answer she had been expecting, but this she could deal with._

_She didn't judge people for their family._

_"One last question," she shifted her weight, "why are you willing to take the risk of working with me?"_

_His smile surprised her, but he didn't answer directly._

_He began digging in his backpack for something._

_Then he pulled out her sketchbook and put it down in front of her._

_He shrugged, but didn't stop smiling. "You forgot it yesterday."_

_He had seen her designs._

_In her mind she just made her decision._

_She held out her hand. "Then we have a deal Mr..."_

_Félix took her hand and shook it. "Agreste"_

_That was a revelation she could deal with later._

_"I look forward to working with you Mr. Agreste."_

* * *

And the rest was history.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome onboard Flight ML281 flying from Paris to Athens. We ask that you please fasten your seatbelts at this time and secure all bagage. Thank you for choosing Miraculous Airlines. Enjoy your flight."

Félix had put away his book and took her hand in his. "Are you ready for the best honeymoon you'll ever experience?"

"This is the only honeymoon I'll ever experience," she teased him.

"Then we better make the best out of it."

** _The End_ **


End file.
